


Miraculous Tales of Starfire and Nightwing

by rebelliousOracle



Category: DCU (Comics), Miraculous Ladybug, Teen Titans (Animated Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Eventual Romance, Multi, Superheroes, Teen Angst, Unrequited Love, love square
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-20
Updated: 2016-08-15
Packaged: 2018-05-08 11:24:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5495384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rebelliousOracle/pseuds/rebelliousOracle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Teen Titans/Miraculous Ladybug crossover that should never have happened but did anyway. </p><p>EDIT: Now with a Glossary/Overview of both series for fans of only one. Ask for something to be added to the Glossary and it shall.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Glossary

**Author's Note:**

> You all have KryallaOrchid to thank for this because she's a terrible enabler and I adore her for it.  
> Perspective will switch between the two main characters every other chapter.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An overview of Miraculous Ladybug for Teen Titans fans who have never seen the show and of Teen Titans for Miraculous fans that have never seen that. If you want me to add something that I skipped over let me know! This glossary was designed for the intent of growing as I add to the world.

Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir an Overview for Teen Titans fans 

(see below for the corresponding Teen Titans overview for Miraculous Fans)

**Lore -**

**Miraculous** : Miraculous are stones that, along with a kwami, give the user the ability to transform into a superhero. One person can use more than one miraculous, though it is not yet known how effectively they can do so or if it comes with negative side effects, either to the user or to the kwami.

**Kwami** : Kwami are small (roughly 4 inches or 10 cm tall if my guesstimation is correct), pixie-like creatures that are incredibly long lived and who live for (at least ) thousands of years. They pick a human and partner with them, giving them their miraculous and thus the ability to become a super hero. There are an unknown number of them but it is assumed that Hawkmoth has captured and corrupted at least one.

**Akuma** : This term is pretty interchangeable with both the corrupted butterflies that create the super villains that Ladybug and Chat Noir face, and with the villains themselves. The butterfly is corrupted by Hawkmoth and seeks out negative emotions. They latch on to an object of the victim, usually something related to the negative emotions, acting as something of a gateway through which Hawkmoth can communicate with the person and offer them a deal that results into the transformation of the civilian into an akuma. The person now gets their powers but they must use them to try and take Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculous.

**Characters -**

**Marinette Dupain-Cheng** : The main character of Miraculous Ladybug. She is French-Asian and an aspiring fashion designer. She is hard working and kind, pretty well liked and fairly outspoken. With the help of Tikki and her miraculous earrings, she becomes Ladybug. She has a crush on Adrien but becomes incredibly and confusingly shy around him. She can be a bit of a pushover and it is implied that she has trouble saying no to people. She enjoys being Ladybug but to her it is a responsibility rather than something to have fun with. In this AU Kori Anders is Marinette but Starfire is not entirely Ladybug. (Partially because I like making things even more complicated than they already are and partly because it fits well)

**Ladybug** : The heroine of Paris and the lady of luck. She is incredibly lucky and utilizes her luck to defeat her enemies. She is the only one who can fix all the destruction caused by Akuma and purify the akuma butterflies. She has a yo-yo type weapon that she can use for attacking, defending and transporting herself by swinging from it. She has three major powers, Lucky Charm, which grants her an object that she can use with her surroundings to defeat the akuma, Miraculous Ladybugs (aka Miraculous Cleansing Light) which resets the city and puts everything back the way it was before the fight, and purification of the akuma. Except for the yo-yo weapon, Nightwing is Ladybug. 

**Adrien Agreste** : The loneliest cat in the world. Adrien is the son of a famous French fashion designer and is incredibly estranged from his son. It is unknown where his mother is. He works as a model for his father’s fashion designs. He was homeschooled until just recently and it is implied in one of the webisodes that his only friend from that time was Chloé. Because of his strict father he is involved in many extracurricular activities in addition to modeling. He is fluent in Chinese, plays the piano, and is a respected fencer. He appears reserved in school, possibly because he is simply bad at interacting with people his own age. He is in love with Ladybug. He becomes Chat Noir with the help of Plagg and his miraculous is in his ring. Dick Grayson is Adrien in this AU.

**Chat Noir** : The champion of bad luck and the black cat of Paris. The polar opposite of Ladybug but also hopelessly in love with her. He uses his bad luck to fight his enemies along with a staff that can grow and shrink at will and even duplicate. He uses it in similar ways to the way that Ladybug uses her Yo-yo. He can see in the dark and has an ability called Cataclysm that basically causes whatever he touches first after calling on it to disintegrate. A limit has not been set on this ability as of yet. Except for the staff, Starfire is Chat Noir. 

**Tikki** : A black spotted, red kwami with big blue eyes and something like wings and antennae. She is very sweet and has a sweet tooth, preferring baked goods as her way of gaining energy back after a transformation. Raven is Tikki.

**Plagg** : A black, cat shaped kwami with green eyes. He absolutely adores cheese, the stinkier the better. He isn’t very sympathetic and is pretty lazy but can be easily bribed with a slice of Camembert. Beastboy is Plagg.

**Alya** : A blogger, runner of the Ladyblog, intent on discovering Ladybug’s identity and Marinette’s best friend. She becomes Lady Wifi when she gets upset over Chloe lying to the principle to get her in trouble. She is a great friend and cares very deeply for Marinette. She is aware of Marinette’s crush on Adrien and is constantly trying to get them together. Karen is Alya.

 **Nino** : A wannabe DJ slash amateur director. He is Adrien’s first friend at public school and sits next to him in class. He becomes the Bubbler after Adrien’s father bans him from seeing Adrien and prevents him from throwing Adrien a birthday party. Victor is Nino.

**Chloe** : Chloe is the daughter of the Mayor of Paris and is spoiled rotten. She has single handedly caused more Akumatizations than any other character and will often lie and use her father’s political leverage to get whatever she wants in school. Kitten is Chloe. 

 

Teen Titans an Overview for Miraculous Ladybug Fans

**Characters** -

 **Dick Grayson/Nightwing** : The first Robin and adopted son of Bruce Wayne. He was raised in a circus as the son of two world famous acrobats known as the flying Grayson’s. His family were murdered as an example after the circus refused to pay protection money to the Gotham Mob and Bruce Wayne, who was in the crowd at the time, adopted him. Possibly because Dick reminded him of himself. Eventually he trains him and Dick takes up the name Robin, to honor his mother, and fights crime alongside Batman. For years they were the Dynamic Duo but after a falling out Dick decides to leave Gotham and go his own way. He forms the Teen Titans and leaves the Robin persona in favor of Nightwing. Dick is portrayed a lot of different ways across the various DC universes but I’m gonna go for his easy going, flashy, charming and sometimes cocky and arrogant style.

 **Koriand’r/Starfire** : Crown princess of the alien planet of Tamaran in the Vegan star system. There are a few backstories for Kori. Most of them are mostly the same but for a few key differences I’m going to use a blended one. Koriand’r was trained by the Warlords of Okaara from a young age in various forms of combat. Upon her return to Tamaran the planet became under siege by the Citadel. The Citadel killed her father and placed Komand’r, her sister, on the throne as a figurehead while Koriand’r was enslaved. After a long imprisonment she finally escaped but not before falling into the hands of a scientist race known as the Psions. They Psions are responsible for her and her sisters ability to shoot starbolts. When she escaped she crash landed on earth and joined the Teen Titans.Tamaranians live by their emotions and are capable of flight and super strength naturally, they can also learn languages through lip contact.

**Victor Stone/Cyborg** : A founding member of the Teen Titans. Victor’s parents were scientists at S.T.A.R. Labs and used him as a test subject for a variety of experiments. After an accident at the lab kills his mother and leaves Victor severely injured, his father uses experimental robotic prosthetics to save his life. He is estranged from his father because of this but after joining the Titans he learns to be more accepting of his new form. He is fun loving and sort of a big brother character.

**Garfield Logan/Beast Boy** : Beast Boy is was born very human. After a bite from a West African Green Monkey gave him the rare Sakutia virus his parents were forced to use an untested serum on him that turned his skin and hair green and gave him the ability to transform into any animal he desired. When his parents died he was adopted by members of the Doom Patrol and was raised as a kid hero. Eventually he moved on to the Titans. He is childish and playful, a bit of a slob and very accepting. He is also vegan.

**Rachel Roth/Raven** : The half-demon daughter of Trigon. Raven was brought up in an alternate dimension known as Azarath and taught to suppress her emotions in order to control her demonic powers and prevent her father from using her as a gateway for possession. Eventually Raven sought to defeat her father rather than to just prevent his escape and after the Justice League turned her away she turned to the Titans. Raven can come across as cold and uncaring but she simply cannot freely express her emotions. 

**Karen Beecher/Bumblebee** : Karen was a scientist who designed a bee themed supersuit. She is strong, intelligent and independent. In comics lore she was dating Herald and helped him develop the Gabriel Horn before suiting up herself to and attacking the Titans to force them to appreciate him. While I like that lore I’m going to ignore it for the most part and just use the personality of the character.


	2. The First Encounter

Blue. As clear as the sky and as deep as the ocean. That was the only thing she could think as she gazed up at the boy who had just saved her from an untimely and entirely embarrassing tumble. His eyes were an unearthly shade of blue. He was wearing sunglasses, but they’d clearly slipped down the bridge of his nose in his haste to catch her.

She glanced down at the stairs, a mere foot and a half from her nose, and then at his arm, wrapped securely around her waist. Her eyes trailed slowly back up to his face, glancing along defined muscles that couldn’t be contained by his thin grey t-shirt and clavicles that made her heart flutter. The smallest of half-smiles rested on his lips as he crooked an eyebrow at her.

 “Alright, there? Enjoying the view?”

 She'd never turned as red as fast as she had then. She hated blushing, it clashed horribly with her hair. Righting herself quickly with his help she grabbed at the sketchbook that had fallen from her grasp and turned to face him, clutching her designs to her chest like a shield. Or maybe it was just to keep her hands occupied so she wouldn't reach out and brush his fringe from his eyes. His beautiful eyes. The same eyes that were watching her with a bemused crinkle at their corners as he waited for her answer... Her breath caught as she tried to answer him and she stuttered out a response. "Y-yeah. I-I mean yes, I'm alright, not yes I'm enjoying the view... Not that the view isn't- Um..." She paused and floundered for words that could salvage her dignity, her blush deepening. "Thanks for the save." She mumbled, mortified.

 His smile widened as he met her eyes and she felt her knees go weak once more. She steadied herself as he withdrew his arm. "No problem. I'm always happy to rescue a pretty damsel in distress."He told her with a wink before he pushed his sunglasses back up over his eyes and suddenly she could breathe again. He stuck his hand out and she glanced at it before she remembered herself and took it gently. "Dick." He told her.

 She frowned and apparently he could read the confusion in the wrinkle of her brow. "My name." He added, "It's Dick." That didn't make much sense. She could have sworn that 'dick' was a rather crude American reference to the male genitalia. French wasn't her first language, or English for that matter, but she'd rather be struck on the spot by lightning than admit her inadequacies in the languages to the attractive boy with his wondrous eyes and easy charm. But it did appear that her pause had lasted a little too long when he prompted gently, "And yours?"

 She jolted and her blush returned. "S-Sorry, it's Kori. Kori Anders."

 His grin didn't falter as he turned her name over in his head. "Kori, huh? That's a pretty name. Not French, is it?" He tacked the end on as a question and she shook her head in response. Not that she appeared the French standard, with her bright auburn hair and skin tanned by too many days in the tropical sun. "It's... It's pacific islander. Tamaranian, actually." She added before glancing away again, her heart heavy with the memories of her home. At the corner of her vision she caught sight of Karen waving animatedly at her from the doors of the school. "Um… I've got to go." She gestured vaguely at her friend and rushed off, hiding her scarlet face behind her books. She grabbed Karen by the arm as she rushed through the wide open double doors, dragging her with little effort as she rushed for their lockers.

Karen Beecher, for all her struggling within her friend’s grasp, looked only slightly rattled when they slid to a stop and Kori near ripped her locker door off it's hinges in her haste to hide her face in it. Now that she had a chance to catch her breath a smile spread slowly across her face and Kori, who had peeked at her past her locker door shuddered. That was the face of pure evil. Apparently, pure evil had flawless copper skin and a dimple. "Kori, mon cherie!" She sing-songed, her twin buns bouncing as Karen danced closer to her hapless friend. Gulping she gathered her books and shut the door, mustering her resolve. "Yes, Karen?" She mumbled, ducking down in a pitiful cower that really looked more like a slouch on one as tall as her.

 Karen glanced at Kori, who was now just below eye level with her. She wanted to tease her. Oh, it was so tempting. Kori had never blushed that badly around a boy before, and Karen had actually heard her stutter. This was such a far cry from her normally bold and easy-going friend that she had to have a crush on that boy. She sucked in a breath to begin her questioning before Kori jutted her lower lip out and glanced up at her as though she were stealing the last torte from beneath her nose. With a roll of her eyes she released the breath as a sigh instead before she smiled weakly, "Have you heard about that hero that's been running around Paris recently?"

The question was so far from what she had been expecting that she almost stumbled again. But catching herself she straightened up and sent a look of grateful relief towards her friend. "The guy in black who's been fighting those people with strange powers and outfits?" She asked in return, her fingers reaching up to toy with the silver locket around her neck, tracing along the cat silhouette etched into the metal.  

Karen rolled her eyes at the question and chuckled, "No, I'm talking about the _other_ hero running along the Paris rooftops in form fitting suits. Yes, that one!" Kori giggled, schooling her tensed features into a gentle roll of her emerald eyes and batted Karen’s waving arms away playfully before nodding. "Ok then, yes I'm familiar with Paris' biggest news topic of the past three months, you big drama queen."

"Well," Karen said, drawing in a huge breath for even more dramatic effect before she ruined the pause by wiggling her eyebrows. "I'm gonna find out who he is. It'll be my big break in journalism!" She added cheerfully as she pulled out her phone. "Look I already started a blog! Apparently he goes by Nightwing so I'm going to call it 'the Nightwatch'. He won't be able to sneeze without me hearing about it." She puffed out her chest as Kori nodded along.

When it was clear that her spiel was over, or at least that she had to catch her breath, Kori interjected with, "But why do you want to expose him? Isn't the mask so that no one finds out who he is? I mean I'm certainly curious, but what if he can't fight the bad guys after everyone knows who he is?"

 Karen huffed, looking incredibly put upon as she replied, "Well of course he doesn't want anyone to know who he is, but how can Paris rely on someone if they don’t know who he really is?" She exclaimed, “I’m sure it won’t be some life changing reveal for him but it’ll certainly be the scoop of the century for me!” Her hands fisted on her hips in a heroic pose. “I’ll discover the truth and share it with the world like any journalist worth her pen would.”

Kori sighed and smiled at the theatrics before she slipped her arm through Karen’s and began steering her from their lockers towards their homeroom. “Well come on then Mademoiselle Vérité. You won’t find any scoops of the century out here in the hallway.”

\----

The classroom was a grand thing, suitable for a school as exclusive as Lycée Jeune Titan where only the wealthy, the connected, or the extremely talented were accepted to finish their schooling. The seats were staggered up auditorium like rows and set before large oak desks. If the room were larger it would be akin to a university, but as the class sizes were generally capped at twenty people, the room was far smaller and intimate. Everything seemed lush and clean, even with the beginnings of the students trickling in and lounging in their seats.

Kori steered Karen up and back to their seats in the second row just as a giant filled the door frame. A giant with the friendliest smile in the world and an American football in hand. “Victor!” Kori cheered with a wave and a nudge towards Karen who grinned slyly and gestured for him to join them. “Vic, you’ll never guess what happened!” She crowed at him as he sat down in the row before them and spun his seat around to talk to them.

Victor Stone had been friends with Karen since they were children and he’d been more than happy to adopt Kori into their close group when she’d moved to Paris during their first year of Collége. He was the star member of most of the school’s athletic teams and planned to pursue American Football upon graduation. He was also the only high schooler in France who played with a prosthetic right arm, granted that it was state of the art and arguably more efficient than a real arm. He’d towered over even Kori after his growth spurt in their first year at Jeune Titan and was the big brother of the group by popular vote.

“What did I miss?” He asked as he leaned back in his chair to rest his elbows on the desk behind him. Karen was practically buzzing with excitement which wasn’t unusual for the shameless gossip, but it seemed uncontainable today as she burst out, “Kori has a crush.”

“What?!” He and Kori cried at the same time. He laughed and she flushed scarlet before glaring at Karen. “I don’t!” She denied vehemently and Karen raised her eyebrow archly in response, “Oh really? Because you literally fell into his arms this morning and I’ve never seen stars that big in your eyes before.” 

Victor chuckled and smiled up at her, “Oh ho, who’s the lucky boy?” He asked and she turned her baleful glare on him, her lips pursed in a pout. “I’ve never seen him around here before,” Karen cut in, “So he must be a transfer.” That was a fair enough statement, Karen was practically queen bee of the school and she knew everybody that roamed its halls with shocking familiarity.

With a groan Kori crossed her arms and buried her head in them, “Why don’t you two stop discussing my lack-of-love life and see if Victor can help you with your quest for truth?” She suggested, successfully diverting the topic as Karen seemed fit to burst with excitement once more. Victor has always been more tech savvy than they but even he seemed impressed as Karen proudly showed him the fruits of her labor in The Nightwatch.

By the time their teacher, Madame Rouge, had arrived, Victor had Karen’s phone before her and was fiddling with the coding in an effort to allow her to live stream from her camera app directly to her blog and Kori had her math textbook before her, slowly working out a few additional problems in an attempt to understand the question that was Calculus.

Coughing lightly Madame Rouge gathered the attention of her students who slid into their seats obediently. “Class I am sure all of you are aware that transfers this late into the trimester are rare, nevertheless we have a new student today. He has transferred in from Gotham City in America and I want you all to remember that he is just another student like all of you.”

 _Oh no._ Kori’s head shot up at the announcement and her stomach filled with butterflies. _Oh please X’hal, no._

Next to her Karen’s grin was blinding as low murmurs began to spread throughout the room. Just who was this guy that he ran the risk of special treatment in a room full of Paris’ elite youth? He couldn’t possibly be that phenomenal. Could he?

Mme. Rouge continued, her voice raising sternly over the whispers. “He’s been home schooled up until now so I’d like for you all to make him feel welcomed.” Raising her voice she called out the open door, “Monsieur Grayson if you could come in and introduce yourself.” Apparently luck was not on her side as the boy from that she had absolutely humiliated herself in front of earlier sauntered into the room with an easy, loping grace, his eyes still hidden beneath his sunglasses and a smirk on his lips like he owned the place.

It was possible. He was Dick Grayson after all. Kori mentally cursed herself for not recognizing him immediately when she had been so close to him earlier. He was only the lead model of one of her favorite clothing lines and the son of her idol Bruce Wayne who had taken the fashion world by storm when his company, primarily technology based up until that point, had branched out into clothing and textiles with Mr. Wayne as the lead designer. Despite having no prior experience in fashion the works were masterpieces of form and function. Kori was wearing one of his jackets now.

His eyes met hers and he smiled just a tiny bit wider and she felt like she was going to throw up. But in a good way. He’d caught her staring. She flushed scarlet and glanced away as the uproar started. Her eyes landed instead on Kitten, who was practically drooling over herself, and the calculating look on her face that bade only trouble for her newest target.

“Silence!” Mme. Rouge snapped, finally losing her patience with the frenzy, a vein pulsing in her forehead just beneath her black bangs and the effect was immediate as jaws snapped shut and rumps fell back into their places. Their instructor’s temper was famous and no one wanted a repeat of the last event that had resulted in an expulsion and two students crying. Eyebrows raised above the sunglasses and disappeared in his fringe as Dick looked about, vaguely impressed by the compliance. “Take a seat Monsieur Grayson and remove those ridiculous sunglasses.”

Glancing around he walked over to the empty space next to Victor and wordlessly gestured at the seat. Met with a nod and easy compliance from Victor, who had been alone at his desk since the incident, he took a seat and Kori suddenly found herself right behind the boy who had stolen her breath. _I’m not going to learn anything._ She wailed silently and gnawed at her lip before casting an uneasy glance at Karen who looked like Christmas had come early.

“Je suis désolé, Madame, but I lost my contacts and these are the only prescription glasses I could find on short notice.” The reply was smooth and practiced. He sounded genuinely apologetic as he folded his hands before him and though her eyes narrowed fractionally Mme. Rouge did not question it further. “Alright but I expect you to change them out when you have bought replacements.”

Kori refrained from mentioning the magazine interview where he had claimed to have 20/20 vision. Maybe she was just misremembering it.

\----

“Are you ready?” The small voice was relaxed and languid as the being it came from floated in the air before Kori’s face. His bright green eyes sparkled with mischief in his equally green, furred face. The black and purple outfit that hid his form did nothing to cover the curling tail or the long, thread-like whiskers that extended from his body. Kori gave a succinct nod as she closed her eyes tightly and took a steadying breath. Trying to find a semblance of peace in her giddy expectation of the night to come was akin to searching for a needle in a haystack.

It was only her third time doing this and her stomach still tensed into knots as she ran her fingers along the hidden clasp of her locket, feeling a little silly, and cried “Beast Boy! Stars out.” The lid of her locket popped open and disappeared, revealing a large emerald stone that glistened in the low light of her room above her gnorfka’s bakery. The stone seemed to radiate with light as her kwami was sucked into it. The light grew stronger in a flash as the magic materialized her miraculous costume into existence and her day clothes disappeared. Trailing her fingers over her eyes with a cheeky grin a silver domino mask appeared along the path they traveled. Her eyes, including even her sclera, became an even brighter green than humanly possible and appeared to glow along with the jewel at her chest that had lost it’s silver chain and was now built into the cropped top of her suit. Her pupils were slitted and cat like and the mask melded to her skin like it was fused to it. And as far as she could tell, it was. 

The braid she had done her hair back in came apart and her hair, already bright auburn and waist length, became a red mass of curls that appeared to flicker and move about her like real flames and would have extended well past her ankles had it held still and obeyed gravity as it should. She ran a hand up and through it with a laugh as silver cat ears appeared in the wake of her hand and a leather like tail extended from the belt at her shorts. She gave them an experimental twitch before examining herself in the floor length mirror next to her sewing machine.

The deep purple shirt stopped just above her rib cage and clung to her like a second skin. It had two large circular cut outs that exposed her shoulders and another two, slightly smaller in size, that revealed just a peek of her collarbones. Silver gauntlets reached from her elbows to the back of her hands but left her fingers free with plenty of range of movement. The shorts were embarrassingly tiny and covered from the tops of her hips to the top few inches of her thighs. It had a silver belt that eventually had formed her tail and was about three inches in width. Her shoes were flat soled boots that extended up to just a couple inches lower than the hem of her shorts.

Surprisingly, the fashion designer in Kori did not object to the outfit at all, instead she loved it. The materials were all incredibly sturdy for their light weight and even the metal of her gauntlets seemed to weigh hardly a thing. But that might have been due to the fact that her transformation gave her incredible strength. Oh and she could fly. Who had time to squabble about the amount of skin she showed off when they could be doing aerial laps around the Eiffel Tower.

She glanced down to find her feet already hovering a few inches off the floor and laughed gleefully. “This is… Miraculous.” She breathed and heard an answering chuckle in her mind. _You can say that again dude._ She smiled and floated up to her skylight, carefully unlocking it and lifting it open just far enough so that she could slip in and out undetected.

As she flew across the city she made sure to keep her speed slow after discovering that the faster she went the more her hair left a blazing trail behind her. It was nearing midnight now and the light would surely attract attention. She hadn’t been spotted yet and while Beast Boy had assured her that even Karen wouldn’t recognize her she wasn’t quite confident enough to reveal herself yet.

Nightwing. She rolled the name over in her mind. According to Beast Boy in this form she was known as Starfire. Did he have a kwami guardian as well? She hadn’t really heard much about him save Karen’s speculations and hadn’t really dwelled on the super powered individuals that had been appearing throughout Paris. So far Nightwing had been fighting them on his own and she’d only discovered Beast Boy two weeks ago when Galfore had given her the locket her mother had always worn as a birthday gift. Was she supposed to help Nightwing fight, or were her abilities a coincidence.

She touched down lightly onto the roof of the Eiffel Tower’s observation deck and sat there, staring out over the beautiful city she had come to know as home. The City of Lights was aptly named as the street lamps illuminated each nook and cranny of the city and dissipated the brisk October chill with an illusion of warmth.

A flash of red light and an explosion had her surging to her feet and leaping head first from the tower. Flames flickered around her and in the distance as the explosion had come from the Latin quarter where there were sure to still be students and tourists milling about. No longer caring about being noticed she streaked towards the danger at top speed and arrived at what appeared to be a battle out of a movie within seconds. “Merde.” She breathed as civilians fled from apartments that were ablaze and crumbling beneath her.

In the center of the small square stood a woman with spiky black hair and red bangs. Her skin was pale white and her outfit was some sort of gothic lolita ensemble. While the fashion movement had been gaining traction in Paris for quite some time it never appeared quite so sinister before. In the girl’s hand she held a large black and red striped umbrella that appeared to be shooting bolts of red lightning and conjuring clouds that swirled around the woman ominously.

Before her was the hero of Paris himself, Nightwing. His outfit was almost entirely black save for a blue logo that spread across his chest like bird wings and streaked over his shoulders and down his arms to his two middle fingers. Wrapped around his waist was a utility belt with several compartments and in his hands was a long staff made of some pitch black metal. He had tousled black hair that was pushed messily back from his face and an oddly shaped domino mask, similar to her own, but black with spiked edges like wings. She couldn’t see his eyes from this distance but they didn’t appear to be inhumanely colored like her own.

He was caught in a tight back and forth with the woman who screamed that her name was Argent Weather and she would have revenge. While he seemed to be evading most of her energy attacks, and deflecting those he could not with his staff eventually he would run out of energy. She narrowed her eyes as they filled with resolve. If it was to be a one time thing, then fine, but she couldn’t sit there and not help.

She reached down to her hips and touched the green gem that was situated in the middle of her belt, just beneath her navel, pressing down on it for a moment before releasing it so that it popped free of it’s holder and into her palm, revealing a string, much like a yo-yo, that she could hold onto from one end but that could be manipulated magically so that it was amazingly versatile in its uses. Spinning it for a moment she channeled her energy so that the yo-yo shot forward from the shadows that had hidden her and wrapped around the tip of Argent Weather’s umbrella, yanking it skyward.

The sudden, and unexpected, movement of the dangerous umbrella tip gave Nightwing the opening he needed. He lengthened the staff in his hands at an impossible speed, landing a square blow right into the center of Argent Weather’s chest. Her umbrella flew free of her hands as her breath left her and rolled towards him, the emerald gem that appeared to be attached to a string unraveled from the tip and shot backwards into the shadows. He looked down at the device which clearly contained the possessing akuma and brought his heel down upon it hard. The akuma fluttered disjointedly from the two broken halves and he snatched it from the air, shoving it into a pouch on his utility belt that then glowed a bright white before the newly cleansed butterfly drifted out.

“Bye bye, butterfly.” He muttered in English as he watched it flutter away on a non existent breeze. He threw his staff into the air and yelled, “Miraculous cleansing light!” The damage to the street and the apartments surrounding him disappeared as flames died down and buildings rebuilt themselves brick by brick.

From the shadows Starfire had to bite back a snort of laughter at the whimsical sounding shout, even as she was impressed by it’s effects. 

The costume disappeared from Argent Weather’s body like ice melting away on a hot day. It revealed a young woman with black pixie cut hair and a pale complexion. Her dark clothes were someone typical of a native Parisian but her umbrella which was brightly colored with red roses on a black background was not. She had collapsed in the center of the street, clearly worn out from the experience of being possessed by so much evil and power.


	3. The Next Night(wing)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day in the life of.

Nightwing stood before the fallen young woman. He was briefly considering moving her somewhere safer when a soft voice spoke up behind him. “I know her.” He whirled and raised his staff. He’d known he’d been being watched but how had she gotten so close without him hearing her? Without thinking he brought his staff down with a shout.

A clang of metal on metal and suddenly he was face to face with his new opponent, staring into impossibly green eyes that seemed to twinkle with mischief and none of the alarm expected from someone who’d just been attacked. She’d raised her arm and met his staff with some sort of metal bracer on her arm. He’d put all of his weight behind that blow and she hadn’t gave an inch. “How rude!” She chided, her voice coming out as a playful purr, “Do you attack everybody who tries to be a helpful good samaritan? Or just me?” She deliberately leaned closer, mentally documenting his expression which was somewhere between shock and awe. His eyes narrowed and he hopped back, putting some space between them.

“Nightwing, isn’t it?” She asked with a smirk. He didn’t drop his defensive position, despite her making no move to attack him. He took a moment to look at her clearly for the first time and felt his mouth go dry. His jaw dropped infinitesimally as his eyes trailed over her form. She didn’t appear human, but no red blooded male would be able to care even if she was from another planet. Her scarlet locks flickered around her and lit the area with unearthly light. She was just an inch or so shorter than him with wide swathes of golden skin on display despite the cold and long legs that stretched forever as she tucked her arms behind her back and leaned forward her costumes ears and tail twitching with interest like a real cat’s. Her smirk spread to a full cheshire grin at his expression. “Cat got your tongue?” She asked with a playful wink. 

_ More like my heart. _ Dick thought to himself before shaking his head to free himself from the stray thought. 

“I’m Nightwing.” He confirmed cautiously, “Who are you and what do you want?” He lowered his staff, “You certainly don’t act like you’re possessed.” She scowled at him, “Of course I’m not possessed. I’m Starfire. I thought you could use a little help, if this is the thanks I’m going to get for saving you maybe I won’t do it again.” She crossed her arms and he had to take a moment to swallow dryly. “I didn’t need any help.” He said petulantly. “I work better alone!” He insisted when she arched an eyebrow at him in disbelief.  

_ Dick. _ A soft scolding chime from the back of his mind caught his attention.  _ She’s here to help, you can trust her. _ Raven didn’t normally converse when they were transformed unless he really needed the help. He supposed she thought that to just push him from the nest and see if he flew was the best course of action. And she hadn’t really been wrong. He’d taken to the skyline of Paris like he’d been born scaling its walls and hopping its roofs. 

Little did he know that Starfire’s own kwami was giving her a similar pep-talk, though it was in no way as eloquently put. He glanced at her to see her giving him an appraising look, a small gentle smile on her lips. His heart did not just flutter at that. Really, it didn’t. He was just recovering from the thrill of the fight, that’s all. Coming down from the high of adrenaline and all that. He glanced at the formerly-Argent Weather on the ground behind him. “You said you know her?”

Starfire nodded. “I am more surprised that you do not.” He found himself analyzing her way of speaking even as he hung on her words. It was almost unnoticeable but he couldn’t help but feel that French was not her first language. She spoke it well but without the normal use of contractions and slang. “Her name is Toni Monetti. She is…  _ was _ in a competition to be the new weather girl of JLA+. She was announced the loser this morning.” A flash of pity crossed her face, she was friends with Toni, who had always been an incredibly nice girl. They’d had gym and math together for two years. “I can get her home.” She said decisively, not at all keen on the idea of leaving a helpless girl unconscious and alone in the middle of one of Paris’ busiest areas at night. 

He took a deep breath and sighed heavily before glancing from Toni back at her and sticking his hand out for her to shake. “I suppose you did help me out. Thank you.” She stared at the outstretched hand and took it gingerly with a lopsided smile. “Happy to be of service. I suppose we should meet up sometime to talk about this?” It wasn’t really a question but she phrased it as such. Dick’s heart thumped achingly and he was glad that he hadn’t quite yet had to swallow his pride to get to see her again. 

He considered her for a long moment before he bowed and gave her a flirtatious grin, lifting her hand to his lips. “If the Star insists on a meeting, I suppose I can make the time.” She snorted and pulled her hand away, flicking him on the forehead as she brought it back to her side. He lifted his head with a half smile and raised from the bow. “I can meet you tomorrow, same time at the Eiffel Tower?” She nodded and scooped up the unconscious Toni like she weighed no more than a feather pillow and began to hover, “Until then, Nightwing.” She smiled brightly and shot up into the sky

He stared after her for a moment, watching as she left a streak of emerald light in her wake before a beep from the blue logo at the corner of his mask reminded him that his time as Nightwing was almost up. Using his staff like a pole vault he launched himself onto the nearest rooftop and began making his way back to the Paris manor he now called home.

As he went he couldn’t help the jealous thought of ‘ _ how come she gets to be able to fly’ _ slip through his mind to Raven’s amusement.

He slipped into the manor through his open balcony door, not worried in the slightest about being overheard sneaking back in. Bruce had flown back to Gotham for a meeting that morning and wouldn’t be back for the rest of the weekend. Alfred had accompanied him and the rest of the staff left for their own homes by seven each night. The building was empty and quiet as a tomb. 

He breathed a deep sigh and glanced around his room. It was far more than any teenage boy needed, but he had long grown used to his adopted father’s preference to use material wealth as a replacement for any type of visible affection. “Wings In.” He breathed and sapphire light flowed along his body, replacing his costume with his casual clothes. The mask over his eyes changed shape to a pair of stylish black sunglasses and a small form emerged from them and yawned sleepily. 

The kwami, Raven, had been his closest confidant ever since he moved to Paris three and a half months prior. She was only about four inches tall, or rather 10 centimeters since he was no longer on the Imperial system, and her skin was an odd shade of gray. She hid most of her form beneath a cloak that was so blue it was almost black. She had a small pair of ebony wings that emerged from her back and deep violet hair and eyes. He had found her just a few days after his arrival, though she claimed to have found him and called him to her.

Exploring the manor had been the obvious thing to do and the hidden rooms and staircases, servants areas from the time of the gentry according to Alfred, had given him ways to fill the empty days as Bruce set up their new life and the Paris chapter of Wayne Enterprises. The attic, whose entrance was hidden beneath an ancient moth worn tapestry that had come with the house had quickly become his favorite place. It was dark and expansive with a chill that lingered in the masonry and couldn’t be extinguished but most importantly it was full to the brim with boxes upon boxes of  _ things _ . Belongings left by each previous resident and more seemed to be packed into the room for him to unearth.

He’d searched through the room for two days before he found the small jewelry box with a black bird and a white cat emblazoned on the lid. Within it lay a single black gem, too flawless to be obsidian and too unique to be onyx. When he touched the stone it had shone with blinding blue light and from within that light had emerged Raven. The stone had morphed into the sunglasses that he now wore and Raven had become his companion. 

She had explained his mission, that her emergence had signalled the resumption of a battle that had stretched for millennia between the Kwami, like herself, and the Akuma, forces of evil that sought to use the powers of the Kwami for ill, and that he would have to fight these forces as the hero Nightwing. Initially he had been worried, but after tasting the freedom that came with the responsibilities he could not claim to want any other life for himself. Fighting the Akuma had been strange as each subsequent villain got just a little bit harder. But now, apparently, he had help. 

Slowly, agonizingly slowly, he settled into a chair next to the table that his exhausted Kwami rested on, a tea cookie in her tiny hands, and took his miraculous from his face. He replaced it with a hand, dragging in slowly down to his chin as he considered the events of the night. Raven had mentioned the possibility that other Kwami would sense her and choose to awaken as well, bringing allies with them to the field of battle, but he hadn’t expected… 

Well. Surely it didn’t matter that his new partner was mind-blowingly, heart-stoppingly attractive. He wasn’t any slouch about his own appearance. Obviously he would have to address his own attraction to her but it definitely couldn’t  _ hurt _ to have a partner who was easy on the eyes and apparently a powerhouse as well, judging by how she’d lifted Argent Weather like she weighed nothing at all. Dick liked to believe that he wasn’t on the same level as most boys his age, that he could make his decisions without the input of raging hormones. He was a model for crying out loud, he worked hand in hand with people that were supposedly the most attractive people in the world. But the more he thought about her, the darker his flush turned.

“This is stupid.” He muttered to himself, forcing the image of golden skin and fiery hair away from his mind, and turned to Raven. “Can you tell me anything about her? I don’t want to be unprepared.” 

Raven placed her half finished cookie to the side and wiped her mouth delicately as she took a moment to consider his request. “I… Can’t tell you everything. But I can at least tell you that I know her Kwami. Very well, in fact.” If Dick didn’t know better he’d say that Raven was embarrassed. “His name is Beast Boy. He’s mischievous and silly, but he always picks good holders for his Miraculous. She is undoubtedly a good person and therefore a worthwhile ally.”

“Okay.” He breathed and nodded thoughtfully to himself before standing with a spine cracking stretch and a yawn. “I suppose that’s all I should need. Goodnight Raven.”

The violet eyes of his kwami turned on him thoughtfully and she smiled, a small, laughing smile, as she read the lingering blush on his ears. Maybe she’d get to see her own other half sooner than she thought.

\----

The next morning started slow for Dick. He woke early, despite his late night, and resolved to forget his dream as quickly as possible. The day before had been rushed and excited, being his first ever day at a public school. Back in Gotham the only other students he had encountered were the young relatives of his father’s friends, like Babs and Wally. He was still excited, but it was tempered by the growing nerves of his meeting tonight.

Emerald eyes had chased him from sleep and now he moved around his room in some semblance of his usual morning ritual, slowly gathering his school supplies as he went. If his good luck held out, and supposedly he only had the best now that he was Nightwing, he would make a few friends in his class and then keep his cool around the girl who, according to Raven, he would be working with against the forces of evil.

His bare feet made not a single noise as he padded through the quiet house. He had woken up before the kitchen staff could arrive and that meant he could sneak a couple things to eat that were definitely not approved by his nutritionist. He filled a plate with pastries and fruit, as well as the tea cookies that Raven was partial to, and slunk back into his room just as the earliest members of the skeleton crew Bruce kept on reserve arrived.

Despite his leisurely pace, and constant breaks for snacking on his horde of ill gotten goodies, he was still ready for school well before his driver would even arrive to take him. Settling in before his computer for the wait, he thought back to the previous day. He’d definitely overheard his incredibly friendly and helpful deskmate, Victor and the girl who sat next to Kori and had introduced herself as Karen, talking about Nightwing and Karen’s journalistic endeavor, the Nightwatch. He’d been too busy keeping his ego from expanding and then later with the Akuma attack to actually give it much thought but now that he had the free time, it was worth looking into. 

He’d been keeping tabs on anything newsworthy that related to himself, in either form, but most of what the news had on Nightwing was just taken from cell phone videos that their own networks viewers had submitted so it was usually pretty far behind. It couldn’t hurt to get his finger directly on the pulse.

He slid his chair around to face his monitor and did a quick search for the blog. What he found surprised him. He’d expected some hastily put together tumblr or a good old fashioned livejournal when he’d heard her call it a blog. But the Nightwatch could have been a professional news site for all of its sole focus on Akuma and Nightwing sightings and documentations. It was certainly easier to navigate than any news site he’d ever been on and there was even an option to submit your own posts for review and addition to the blog.

And the information. The blog had only been up a few days but it was clear that Karen had been following his movements almost since his first rooftop appearance when the police had thought him just some kid playing at vigilante. Some of it was unnervingly close to home as well, like the map that documented where he’d been seen and what directions he went to and from as well as his most common patrol routes. He’d have to start going out as Dick and then appearing as Nightwing all over the city if he wanted to throw her off his trail. 

It clearly had no malignant intents as well. Sure, the tagline “Who is he?” made her ultimate goal of revealing his identity pretty clear, but the website had been made with love as well. There were written submissions of people that he had saved thanking him and of Akuma victim success stories in a sort of ‘Where are they now’ slot. There was even a news post, warning of the prior night’s Akuma, telling people to avoid the area if they could and telling those that couldn’t of simple precautions they could take based on the weather controlling abilities that Argent Weather had, as well an ‘All clear post’ when the Akuma had been defeated.

The most recent post had been uploaded as he looked through the blog and consisted of a few blurry pictures of Starfire, most of the green comet-like streak she had made in the sky has she flew off, but a couple of her standing and talking with Nightwing. The post was mostly speculation of her identity and her relation to Nightwing, with a few comments from blog goers arguing whether she was a hero like Nightwing or a new akuma, and one that even claimed she was just someone’s “OC insert” and that the photos were clearly photoshopped. They were sincerely disappointed with the fellow bloggers for falling for such an obvious hoax.

A buzz from his phone interrupted his chuckling at that particular theory and he glanced down to find a text from his driver and another from Victor asking if he’d like to get lunch outside the school together. Thinking of the meager portions the chef was sure to give him to go he eagerly replied an affirmative. Standing, he grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder. “Come on Rae,” He called to the kwami who was in the middle of taking a delicate sip of her favorite herbal tea from an oversized tea cup before she zipped over and tucked herself in a cozily lined inner pocket he had installed in the bag himself, much to the protest of his many times pricked fingertips. Drawing himself up with a small, confident smile and a deep breath he nodded to himself. 

\----

He slid into his desk with plenty of time remaining before the final bell. Victor had yet to arrive but Kori and Karen were chatting rapidly in hushed tones when he opened the door only to quickly fall quiet. Kori’s lower lip was jutting out in an adorable pout and pink was spreading across her cheeks by the time he turned around in his chair. 

“Good morning ladies, what’s up?” He asked with a friendly smile. Karen returned it with a broad grin of her own and Kori, a little hesitantly, offered a small smile and a shy wave of her hand. 

“Not much, Dick. Just discussing the news. Kori here claims she saw the girl in purple last night and she didn’t even get a picture for my blog!” Karen complained theatrically and Kori offered her a scowl. “I-I didn’t think of it alright.” She replied hotly, only a hint of the stammer she’d suddenly developed appearing as she fell into the familiar routine that was arguing with Karen, “You said it was called The Nightwatch! How do we even know that she has anything to do with Nightwing?”

“The girl in purple?” Dick cut in before they could resume arguing, “Are you talking about the photos that were on your blog this morning?” Karen paused in the middle of opening her mouth to form a retort for Kori and turned her warm brown eyes on him, her face cracking in a delighted beam. “You read my blog?” She asked almost breathlessly. “You’re famous, and you, you read my blog?”

He chuckled and ran his hand through his fringe in embarrassment, “Well, I overheard you talking about it yesterday and I thought I’d check it out. I’m really interested in Paris’ hero, to be honest.” ' _Or rather I'm interested in what you know about him._ ' He smiled gently at her excited gasp, “It’s really well made and the organization is fantastic! Everything is so easy to find. But what about the newest post? I thought Paris only had one superhero?”

“That’s just it!” Karen crowed excitedly, “We did! Nobody knows who she is! She hasn’t made any official statements or talked to any press but she was seen talking to Nightwing last night and some people even got photos of what looked like a scuffle so a lot of people think she’s some new akuma.” Kori wrinkled her nose at that in what appeared to be irritation but she didn’t comment and he was to preoccupied with the topic at hand to question her on it. “I saw one person claiming that she didn’t exist at all on the comments.” He pointed out with a smirk. 

“That’s ridiculous and I deleted the comment already. I took one of the pictures of her flying myself.” Karen retorted with a roll of her eyes and the conversation continued, Kori growing steadily and silently redder as it progressed and they gushed and theorized, but appeared to have toned them out as she scribbled away in a sketchbook. 

The day passed quickly in much the same manner, each free minute spent chatting with Vic, as he insisted on being called, who has slipped into his desk with merely seconds to spare but wasted no time in establishing himself as a possible new friend with his laidback manner and casual openness, and Karen, who interjected every so often with some witty remark or sly jab that would spur on whatever conversation they currently had going. 

The only time that things became even a little uncomfortable was when the, objectively, pretty blonde named Kitten fawned over him, asking him for an autograph and if he’d like to go out for lunch. Luckily he’d already had plans and Victor had refused to tell her where they were going. She’d then tried to bully Kori out of her seat behind him so that she could spend more time with her “Dickie-poo”. The nickname both amused and terrified him and he expected Karen to stand up for Kori but she merely watched with a bemused smile as Kori tore into her in response as she criticized for treating him like an object, did she mean objectifying him, and how dare she try and make her leave the spot she had occupied for the entire year because of some perceived claim on him? Kitten had fled and Kori was left to grumble in a slightly guttural language that he imagined must be Tamaranian. He also noticed that he was the only one surprised by the reaction. 

“What was that?” He whispered to Vic when the class had moved on from the show. “I thought Kori was shy?” Victor gave him a look that laid somewhere between disbelief and hilarity before he broke out in laughter and refused to answer him with a shake of his head and tears in his eyes as Mme. Rouge asked him what he thought was so funny about Ophelia’s tragic death in Hamlet. 

\----

It was a beautiful night and he couldn’t help but think that it was a sign as he stood atop one of the support beams of the tour Eiffel and gazed out across the Champ de Mars. The weather was a little cool for the time of year, but nothing compared to Gotham, and he had arrived early to gauge the area. The possibility of her being an Akuma sent to trick him hadn’t left his mind and it had niggled and burned at his subconscious for most of the day until he felt like ants crawled beneath his skin. If she was sent to trick him she was doing a very good job of unnerving him at least.

_ Calm down. _ A small voice in his mind scolded and he grimaced and sighed. “I just don’t know about this Raven.” He said weakly and furrowed his brow. “How can I trust her? I don’t know her.”

He felt, more that heard, her scoff.  _ You’re only saying that because you find her attractive. _ He tried to protest, despite knowing that he did indeed think that, but she cut him off. _ I told you that you would more than likely have a partner soon. Deathstroke is slowly gathering his strength and you can’t fight him alone. He has so many of us… _ She trailed off, a echoing sadness in her that he felt like it was his own pain. 

He resumed his pacing and as the minutes passed slowly he felt Raven’s calming presence ease his nerves and relax his tensed muscles. All of that was for naught as a puff of heated air hit the back of his neck and a warm voice said with a giggle, “Boo.” He yelped and nearly fell off the beam before a gloved hand caught his forearm. “Woah there!” He looked down behind him, he was nearly parallel to the ground, so far below him, but she didn’t even look strained as she supported his weight and quickly hauled him back up on the beam. “Sorry.” She chirped without an ounce of apology in her voice and her her tail waved slowly behind her. “Are you alright?”  
  
“I need to get you a bell.” She smiled at that and he felt his doubts about the arrangement dissipate completely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Silly Dick, Kori isn't shy she's just crushing hella hard. I'd like to thank the people that commented and gave me Kudos. I'm really happy that you're excited about the story and I hope that it continues to live up to your expectations for it.


	4. How to become a Star(fire)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is two days late and about a thousand words shorter than normal. I ended up rewriting most of it and took out an entire scene that I felt would be better in Dick's perspective than it would in Kori's. I might start making shorter chapters (around 2000 words instead of 4000) because of the perspective swapping but if I do I'll probably put them out twice a week instead. I aim to finish the next chapter over the weekend and have it up on Tuesday like I told you last chapter.

Her smile was hesitant but sincere. She was a little worried about a working partnership. Would they work well together? This was all happening so quickly. Beast Boy’s voice filtered through her mind reassuringly.  _ He can’t do this without you Kori _ .  _ It’s actually been a long time coming _ . This was silly of course, and she watched Nightwing carefully. He hadn’t yet let go of her forearm where he’d reciprocated the wrist hold she’d used to grab him. He’d been defending Paris on his own for a little over two months. But she had the ability to help, and so she would.

“You wanted to talk.” She prompted, a little unnerved as he stood there staring at her, an unreadable expression in his eyes. She looked pointedly down at his hand and her eyes narrowed as she looked back up at his face.

He had the decency to look sheepish as he released her and rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, sorry.” His arms crossed in front of his chest and he regarded her more thoughtfully, the intense, almost frightening, emotion she had seen before but not understood was all but gone from his eyes. “I’m just trying to figure out what working together would entail. My kwami claims that you and I need to work as partners.” His expression darkened for a moment before he shook his head. “But I don’t  _ know _ you. So how can I work  _ with _ you?”

She pursed her lips and rolled her eyes. Boys could be so dramatic. “Well, then obviously we’ll just have to get to know each other. Don not forget that I don’t know you as anything other than the hero of Paris anyway. You are not alone in this anymore. I  _ want _ to help. But maybe we should start with the basics of what you believe our duties are. Obviously we fight the akuma but what else?” 

His brow furrowed. “What do you mean, what else?”

She huffed a breath. “I mean, do we use our powers to save people from other things as well?” She gestured broadly and began to pace. “Is this a full time job? How can it not be? What are my responsibilities? Should I transform to stop every pickpocket I can or just for things that the police can’t handle on their own?” He watched her with wide eyes. “How can I live my normal life with the knowledge that I have all this power to do good and I am not out in costume every minute of the day doing it?!”

Tears pricked painfully behind her eyes and she wiped them away furiously, angry with herself for allowing the heightened emotions that the transformation encouraged to bring her to tears in front of this strange boy who was still staring at her as though transfixed.

“Are you-“ He started and she shot a glare at him that was as fierce as possible. His mouth slammed shut with an audible clack of teeth, his hands raising into the air in a passive display of peace. “Did your eyes just glow?” He asked instead, his curiosity palpable and she sniffed haughtily. “I have no idea. I am not fully familiar with this form.” He frowned and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “How many times have you transformed?”

“This is only my fourth transformation.” She shifted nervously. “I only met my kwami a couple weeks ago.”

It was Nightwing’s turn to pace as he began murmuring to himself so quietly that even with her enhanced hearing she only caught a couple phrases and only those that made little sense. Perhaps he was having a discussion with his kwami? Finally he stopped and looked up at her, surprise showing around the corners of his eyes and mouth almost imperceptibly. It appeared that he had forgotten she was there. “I, honestly, hadn’t much thought to our roles as heroes.” He began, “ But you bring up excellent points. Unfortunately our abilities operate on pretty strict time limits, which you may or may not have already discovered.” He carded his fingers through his bangs and shrugged helplessly at her. 

“It’s impressive that you kept yourself hidden for as long as you did, especially as you are a little hard not to notice.” He gestured at her weakly and even in the low light her night vision could pick out his blush. She refused to allow herself to feel embarrassed. Midriff tops were in style this year anyway. “I had begun to believe that last night was your first transformation. You surprised everyone with your appearance at the fight and unfortunately the public doesn’t know whether your intentions are good or evil.” She had to bite her lip to hide a grin at that as he continued. He sounded like he’d been talking to Karen. 

“Maybe…” He paused and seemed to think their options over. “So far the akuma fights have been limited to a couple a month. With one last night we should have some time before the next even if Deathstroke  _ is _ gaining power like my kwami claims. So maybe, before we decide anything else, I should know what you can do.”

“What I can do?” She echoed curiously.

“Yeah.” He said with a grin. “Like the powers that come with being Starfire.”  

She pursed her lips and lifted a hand ticking off her powers on her fingers and repeating them aloud as Beast Boy excitedly gushed over her abilities. “Lets see. I have flight, obviously.” She started, gesturing to her feet that hovered a couple of inches off the ground. “That one is pretty instinctual, apparently, but maneuverability and agility can always be improved upon. I have heightened senses of hearing, smell and sight. Night vision as well. Oh, interesting.” She paused and grinned, her head tilted and ear twitching as though listening to something audible rather than an ongoing monologue in her mind. 

“What?” He asked and her grin turned positively cheshire in nature. 

“My strength has an upper bound that is only limited by how confident I am in myself.” She could have sworn she saw stars in his eyes. “I have the yo-yo. Which is apparently called the Star bolt.” She gestured to the jewel in her belt. “And something called Supernova. I have yet to use that one but he likens it to your Lucky Charm. Though he also claims that it is completely different? Sometimes he is quite difficult to understand. Unrelated to my ability as Starfire, I am something of a polyglot.”

“Is French not your first language?” She shook her head but refused to elaborate. He was clearly doing the fishing for information and she wasn’t really interested in sharing the girl behind the domino mask. He sighed. “It’s not mine either.” Interesting. He spoke it well. She didn’t comment so he went on.

“Alright, maybe we should start from Supernova.”

\---- 

The next week was the most exhausting of Kori’s life, including her first week in France after the coup. Dick became fast friends with Victor which meant he was quickly ingratiated into their class as pretty much everyone adored Vic. When he wasn’t waylaid by Kitten, something she almost found herself grateful for if only because it might spare her an early death by heart failure, he and Victor joined Karen and, by association, herself, for lunch. And he was so charming. It wasn’t fair. 

She’d always gotten a little shy when she developed a crush, which she’d finally admitted to much to Karen’s delight, but she had never had this much of a problem simply expressing herself. She spoke over twelve languages and you would think one of them would have the words she needed.

He was nice enough not to mention it, but her friends were not so forgiving. Karen was constantly looking for excuses, ranging from subtle to unbearably obvious, to leave them alone together. Victor joined her gleefully as he seemed to completely approve of the idea of her dating his new friend. Dick was either incredibly oblivious or completely uninterested. She hoped it was the prior but suspected it was probably the latter. Either way, he was almost unbearably sweet. He went out of his way to include her in their conversations, even when her replies were stunted gibberish.

Karen had posted a few pictures of her to her blog that were far more flattering than the blurred shots of her from her first exposure. In a rare stroke of luck for Kori, she had also declined to speculate about the intentions of ‘the girl in purple’ until she knew more. Kori was deeply grateful for her friend’s journalistic integrity. She didn’t know what she’d do if her own best friend were also to believe any of the terrible things that her critics were claiming. Victor had already decided that Starfire was on Nightwing’s side and Dick seemed to join in the sentiment. She’d nearly spontaneously combusted when she overheard him sternly defending her alter ego after Kitten had used a few rather choice words about her that Kori could not repeat in good taste.

On the other hand, Nightwing was a terrible taskmaster and an incorrigible flirt. They’d decided that every other night would be for training and they’d patrol two nights a week and stop any human crimes that they came across. They would split up and each take a half of the main city. Hopefully as time went on and they adjusted they could expand their realm of influence so that more people could sleep safely at night.

Because of this, however, the public was still unsure of her intentions. They’d picked a secluded warehouse for their training sessions and because they patrolled individually there were more pictures of her, but none of them together. She was hesitant to just make some sort of public announcement and Nightwing hadn’t found the idea particularly appealing either. It seemed the only thing for it was to wait for an akuma attack so she could openly help and people could draw their own conclusions about their partnership. 

There was still a shockingly large number of people who believed her simply to be some rabid fangirl trying to garner Nightwing’s attention with skimpy clothes and rooftop parkour. The idea amused him to no end and if she never saw him grin suggestively and wiggle his brow at her again it would be too soon. His attention and come ons were flattering, and if she hadn’t already met Dick she’d probably find herself equally tongue tied around the suave hero, but she had met him and so she met his flirtations with teasing and witty come backs instead. 

But for all that Nightwing was a flirt, with his terrible puns and using endearments as nicknames, he clearly knew what he was doing. She’d learned that in their very first sparring session. Starfire may have been able to bench press him but her great strength was useless when she couldn’t even land a blow. With his ridiculous flips and twists she wasn’t even sure that she was the one who was able to fly. His staff was also used to its maximum efficiency. From splitting into two separate eskrima sticks to an extending pole vault, each blow was precise and smarted terribly. She was only lucky that she didn’t bruise easily and those that did form healed much faster than they logically should have. 

That didn’t mean that Starfire wasn’t capable in her own right, however. Her gnorfka hadn’t held command in the army for nothing and he had taught what he could to Kom and herself after they had fled Tamaran. Her yo-yo was an odd weapon but as a bludgeon it would do just fine, and the magically manipulatable string made it perfect for immobilizing enemies so that she could close in and finish them off with the minimalistic style that was Tamaranian martial arts. That particular combination had been the first of the bruises that she had returned to Nightwing and she intended to pay back her debt in full eventually.

But more than anything, more than the bruises, aching muscles, and the sleep deprivation, and as much as she’d never admit it on pain of death, training with Nightwing was fun. His personality was perpetually chipper, even when she turned him down. His jokes, as awful as they were, kept her from tearing her hair out in frustration as he agilely dodged her blows and returned them with ones she could only avoid of block half of the time. He really seemed to enjoy being Nightwing despite, or perhaps even because of, the responsibilities it had granted him. 

She had to agree that there was something basely empowering about the knowledge that she could punch through a solid sheet of steel, even if it had left her open to half a dozen attacks as she tried to free her fist. 

They’d slowly worked through the range of her abilities, testing her limits, physically as well as the time limit of her transformation. If they didn’t just sat there they transformation seemed to last for hours. On the other hand, the abilities that seemed to drain it the most were the Lucky Charm and Supernova, leaving only about ten minutes left to find a place to release the transformation privately. At Nightwing’s insistence she began to carry around a square of tofu to be prepared for any surprise akuma attacks and to recharge Beast Boy if the fight dragged on. It was easy enough for him to say when all his kwami wanted was cookies and the occasional herbal tea, but tofu reeked and Beast Boy believed that the smellier it was the better.

By the end of the week she’d taken to aerial combat like she’d been born dancing through the wind. The numbers of bruises she counted each night continued to diminish and the number she dealt began to grow. She had even begun to emulate some of Nightwing’s more fantastic maneuvers and incorporate them into their sparring sessions. He’d laughed and called her a cheater, claiming that he had learned those moves the old fashioned way and she had stuck her tongue out at him childishly. But she caught the approving gleam in his eye and if she turned a little pink, well, they were exerting themselves so it was only natural.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Training montages, am I right?


	5. Birds of a Feather

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flock together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am very sorry for the delay I went to Vegas with my family and then drove back down to Texas for the start of the Spring semester and was just way too busy to get the chapter out on time. 
> 
> Just so you know I will be adding a chapter to the very beginning of the story that covers basically everything you need to know about both the Miraculousverse and the Titans lore I'm using so that people from both fandoms, regardless of if they're only in one fandom. It should be up within the next few days.
> 
> I'm not going to make any promises about the next chapter because it seems I invariably am unable to meet any deadline but it should be soonish.
> 
> I personally liked this chapter but I'm still not 100% confident on writing Dick's point of view so let me know what you think! I appreciate every comment and constructive criticism because it only helps me grow as a writer.

He was only enjoying himself a little. Okay that’s a lie, he was enjoying himself a ton. But she didn’t need to know that. This was the most fun he’d had in a long time. His partnership with Starfire hadn’t come to public light yet because Deathstroke hadn’t yet built up the energy for another akuma attack. He was going to miss the secret when it was gone.

They’d spent most of the week training but on the days after their individual patrols she’d come to training huffing and fuming at the ridiculous theories and lies, her cat ears turned back flat against the head and her tail whipping violently with her ire. His laughter had only led to more pouting and put-out glares, this time aimed in his direction, but it was honestly one of the cutest things he’d ever seen. 

But for now things were moving along well. She’d surprised him with her ability to keep up with him during their sparring sessions from the very beginning. Though it was clear that she struggled on occasion it was equally obvious that she wasn’t a beginner by any means. Her fighting style, though rough and maybe a little simple, for his dramatic flair at least, was nothing like anything he’d encountered before. When he questioned her, she evaded and when he pushed, she got stubborn and pushed back.

They’d agreed that it was for the best if they kept their identities secret from each other as well as everyone else, but Dick would swear that he agreed only under duress. If duress counted as staring down a girl in cat ears as she held you one handed and hovered forty feet above the ground. She hadn’t explicitly threatened to drop him if he kept trying to worm information about herself out of her, but she hadn’t really needed to either. The implication was there.

But as much as he’d miss having his Star, as he’d taken to calling her only half jokingly, all to himself, his skin practically crawled in anticipation of the next akuma attack. He could feel it, the dark energy that Deathstroke stored up between each attack and it hung heavy in the air. Starfire could feel it as well, though she claimed it was less of a feeling of heaviness than of a metallic scent that she could catch on occasion in the air. A scent that sent shivers up her spine and raised gooseflesh on her arms. When he asked her what it smelt like her eyes had darkened and she turned away with a muttered, “Destruction.”

He hadn’t asked again. He didn’t want to know what the haunted expression on her face had meant. 

It was only a matter of time anyway. Deathstroke stroke had the energy, they both knew it, he simply had to wait for the negative emotions that he could exploit. When it happened they would stop him. They had to.

\----

When it came down to it, Dick should have seen it coming. Really, he should have. He had let his guard down for a moment and of course the thing that they had been waiting for had happened. He might have great luck normally, but this only made his rare moments of bad luck all the more glaring.

He’d been on set for a photoshoot. They had been working on the Spring line-up, the usual goal of the late Autumn shoots, and the Wayne collection was going to make the most of the thin clothes and their young, attractive head model. Of course that meant that he had to sit there pretending he wasn’t freezing as they drenched him with water. 

The goal, supposedly, was to represent the Spring rains and the theme of the project, Renewal, and not just to show off his hard earned abs. They then worked endlessly on trying to line up several good shots, posing and adjusting him as they saw fit and shouting inane comments that he thought might be meant to inspire him, but were really just making him hungry. Because really what did the photographer mean with all the talk about spaghetti? 

They had picked a good day for it at least. The park was sunny and their wasn’t any wind to steal what little warmth he had left from his body as they wrapped him in thermal blankets and toweled his hair dry between shots while they worked on adjusting the equipment and lights. He’d gathered a bit of a crowd after he’d sent a text to Victor telling him he’d have to take a raincheck, hah, on the movie they had planned on attending because the shoot was dragging on longer than it had been scheduled for.

Victor had immediately responded that he’d swing by for moral support and apparently he had decided that he needed all the moral support possible-he wasn’t wrong in that respect-because he’d brought along Karen and Kori as well. The girls each had a small child in tow, twins it seemed, that clung tightly to each other and seemed particularly attached to Kori. When the small group reached his shoot he waved them through past his driver slash bodyguard. They sat with him in the small gazebo as he waited for the staff to set up and the twins, Matías and Mateo according to Karen, both clambered into the red heads lap and began speaking to her in Spanish.

Dick liked to believe that he had a fairly good grasp of conversational Spanish but the speed of their conversation and the heavy dialect had him struggling to even catch phrases. Kori however seemed to understand it perfectly and though she occasionally shot shy glances at him, still bafflingly intimidated or uncomfortable in his presence, she responded to the twins in fluent Spanish that was slow and clear enough for him to follow. Apparently she was politely turning down Mateo’s proposal.

“I didn’t know you spoke Spanish too.” He commented with an easy smile, trying to put her at ease. If her stiffening shoulders and wide green eyes were anything to go by, he failed. Her cheeks flushed and she nodded slowly. “Y-yes. It was… Um-“ She paused as if looking for the words, “U-Useful to learn.” She seemed to clam up and glanced wide eyed to Karen who was grinning. “Yeah, my Kori’s a real smart cookie.” She reached over and wrapped an arm around the back of her friend’s neck and pulled her in for a side hug. “She’s basically the only reason anyone in our class passed English. Thanks to her I can actually interact with tourists.” 

“Really? I’ll have to remember that when the French exams roll around and have you tutor me.” He gave her his most charming smile and decided that he quite liked the particular shade of pink that she turned when she was embarrassed. Coral? That seemed like the right word for the color. It reminded him of sandy beaches, gentle waves and sunshine in any case. 

“She’d love to.” Karen replied before she could say anything, “But only if you help us,” She gestured to herself and Kori with a broad wave of her arm, “With Physics. I saw how well you did on that test, Sparky.” She grinned smugly. Victor nodded in agreement, “Count me in. I could always use a little help surviving finals week.” 

“It’s a deal. But let’s discuss details later, it looks like they are finally ready for me again.” He rolled his eyes at them with a put-upon grimace and Kori braved a shy, encouraging smile and whispered, “Good luck.” 

\----

The shoot seemed to drag on for hours after that with Karen and Kori leaving the relative warmth of the gazebo to play a game of tag with the twins as Vic watched affectionately from a distance. Their breath puffed white in the crisp air and he found himself envying their thick sweaters and scarfs as the photographer continued to rave senselessly about the shoot lacking romance and action. As if he wasn’t dripping wet and dying slowly by way of hypothermia. How much more romance could he possibly want? 

“This shoot needs…” The photographer, paused mid rant and turned towards Karen and Kori his eyes brightening even as Dick’s stomach sank. He had a bad feeling about this. “A girl! Yes! A girl is exactly the _romance_ that this shoot is dying for!” He rushed over to Karen and gripped her hand as she stared at him questioningly. She was probably questioning his sanity which Dick was currently doubtful of, himself. 

“Ladies!” He exclaimed. “Which one of you would like to be featured in the upcoming Wayne promotion?” Jaws dropped and Dick wasn’t entirely sure his wasn’t among them. This photographer was fairly new and he was hiring a female model out of the blue to be featured in what was supposed to be a solo ad for the _men’s_ line of Wayne clothing. Bruce was going to have a cow. 

“You want one of us to model? With Dick Grayson?” Karen clarified slowly. “Yes, yes! _Mia amata_ , the romance demands it!” He cheered with a dramatic shake of his fist towards the sky. He had to struggle to suppress a grin as Karen immediately began to tell the photographer about the appointment her younger brothers were running late for as she plucked the twins from Kori’s arms before hip checking her forward. The poor girl stumbled helplessly into the waiting arms of the near rabid cameraman before she turned her head to shoot a fiery glare at Karen. 

“My friend here, however, is completely and utterly free for the rest of the day. And she knows just about everything there is to know about fashion. She’s a particular fan of Monsieur Wayne’s work.” The warm brown eyes shot a wink in his direction and he couldn’t hold back a laugh. He’d heard that Kori was attending their Lycée with a fashion design scholarship so he wasn’t surprised that she was familiar with his adoptive father’s work. 

She didn’t look as excited as would at the opportunity, however, instead she looked like she’d just been plunged head first into a vat of icy water. He could sympathize as he sat there shivering against the brisk air. Well, if the photographer had his way her expression would be a bit more literal in a matter of minutes. He felt terrible for her being caught off guard like that and caught her eye to send her a small apologetic smile as she tried to talk her way out of it.

When she realized that she couldn’t wheedle her way out of actually taking the pictures she seemed to change tactics. “Monsieur, you claim that you need me for the romance of the shoot, but if girls were to see me in the pictures with Dick then they would be unable to see themselves in my place. The clothes you are photographing are male clothes anyway, I can’t exactly showcase them. If you were to take the pictures with my back to the camera, however…” She trailed off and let him draw the conclusion she was patiently leading him towards on his own. His eyes widened and he exclaimed, “ _La genialità_! _È perfetto_!” He pulled Kori down so he could place a sloppy kiss on both of her cheeks. 

She grimaced delicately and waited till he turned away to wipe at her cheeks with a wrinkled nose. Dick laughed and she glanced at him in shock, a flush spreading across her face as he sent her a cheeky wink in congratulations. The photographer rushed her over to the trailer they used for hair and make up while Victor and Karen laughed uproariously. So much for that appointment they were running late for. 

The twins looked bewildered and upset at the loss of their translator but patiently played together as they ran through the flocks of pigeons that were settled on the ground before a civilian, pecking diligently at the food he threw them. The pigeons scattered before them, taking flight for the relative safety of the trees that surrounded them. 

Sometimes the negative emotions that Deathstroke drew upon were prompted by the strangest things. Maybe he could have stopped it from escalating if he had noticed the purple coloration that appeared on his down turned face. But how could he have known that the boy would get so upset about not being able to feed his birds? Upset enough, even, that Deathstroke could take his anger and sadness and use it to create a villain based on pigeons of all things. He couldn’t have.

Logically he knew that it was impossible to predict the next akuma, but he couldn’t help the feelings of guilt that blossomed in his chest as he watched the birds began to multiply in number, diving from the air to attack pedestrians and force them under what ever cover they could find. Maybe he would have noticed if he hadn’t been dealing with his stupid heart stuttering at the girl who sat behind him as she emerged from the crew trailer. She’d made it out in a record short time. They had taken the same amount of time just fluffing Dick’s fringe to a carelessly disheveled perfection as they had fully prepping Kori for her debut.

When they’d called out that they were done so quickly he had thought they might have skimped on her preparation. Either in hopes that the photographer would give up and pick one of the shots from earlier or that it wouldn’t be noticed from the back angle of the shots. That particular thought was almost immediately dashed from his mind as he eyes took in the red head standing at the foot of the trailer stairs shyly. Her make up _was_ light, but it only served to subtly enhance her already pretty face, not to just prep her for the harsh lighting. They had removed her hair from the tight braid she had been wearing earlier so that it fell in gentle, curling waves that were pulled in front of her right shoulder to expose the slender curve of her neck on the other side. 

She was wearing and over large button up, clearly intended to be interpreted as one belonging to her lover, in this case him, by the viewer. The sleeves fell over her hands so that only her fingers, clutching tightly to her arm above the elbow, were exposed and the tail of the shirt fell past the tiny pair of pajama shorts they had given her. Her feet were bare and she shifted every couple of seconds, clearly uncomfortable on the cold ground. The effect seemed to make her smaller and more fragile as it awakened a strange protective urge that he wasn’t aware that he had possessed. He fought back the blush that he could feel creeping up the back of her neck and tried to swallow around the sudden lump that was his tongue. 

A scream split the air behind him and they both whirled to face the source. “Run!” They both shouted upon seeing the rush of people from the photo crew fleeing from attacking pigeons with bright red wings and plumage with a small white spotting of feathers in the center of their breasts. She seemed to fight over a moment of hesitation before grabbing his wrist and tugging him along behind her as she ran, shouting for their friends as she did so.

“Oh I should have never left the twins, they were my responsibility!” She fretted and he frowned, wanting to comfort her but not knowing what to say. He needed to get somewhere hidden so that he could transform, this was almost certainly the work of an akuma. If he had to guess it probably had something to do with the man who had been feeding the pigeons from the park bench earlier. He didn’t really want to leave Kori alone but he couldn’t transform if he stuck with her.

“I’ll go look for them!” He told her, shouting to be heard over the panicking crowd they had been swept up in. She looked reluctant to release his wrist so he pulled back just enough that when he stumbled and his hand slipped from hers it looked accidental. He regained his footing and waved her on “Keep going! I’m right behind you!” 

The lie tasted horrible on his tongue but he curbed the guilt as he allowed a few people to fill in the space between them before ducking away down a side alley and taking off towards a secluded street that he knew was surrounded by tall windowless walls. When he was sure he was alone he called, “Raven.” She darted out from her hiding spot in the inner pocket of his jacket and nodded solemnly at him. “You’re still wet.” She pointed out and he glanced up at the damp fringe with a sigh. “I should be fine. We have trouble to deal with in the mean time. Raven, wings out!” The alley flooded with the brilliant sapphire light that always accompanied his transformation, something that his circus heart found wonderfully showy and dramatic.

When the light cleared Dick Grayson was gone and in his place was the hero of Paris, Nightwing. He ran a hand through his damp hair, grinning recklessly as he forced it to stand up in loose spikes. He pulled his staff from the holster at his hip and clicked the Nightwing logo. A section of the staff, close to the top, slid up and away from the rest of it, revealing a small screen that functioned as a communicator. He furiously typed out a quick SOS to Starfire, who’d be notified of it by her kwami if she wasn’t already transformed. Another click of the button and the staff slid back together and he grasped it tightly, willing it to extend. 

It lifted him off of the ground and once he was higher than the surrounding roof tops he leaned forward and began falling towards the nearest one. His grin spread as he shortened his staff mid fall and flipped twice before landing neatly with his feet together on a short brick chimney. He took a moment to establish his surroundings, watching the movement of the crowds on the larger streets as they fled into the safety of buildings. He could only hope his friends had made it to cover safely as well. Once he was certain he had identified the general direction of the akuma he unfolded and took off along the roof tops, leaping from building to building, along ledges, tiled roofs and scaffoldings with ease. 

He followed the flocks of pigeons back past the park and on through the city, trying to analyze the situation and perhaps even find a pattern that they could use to defeat the enemy. This particular akuma seemed to be fairly mobile so it must either be able to fly, which seemed likely based on it’s apparent control over pigeons, or have some form of transportation. The pigeons themselves seemed endless in number, far more than he had ever seen and even more than her could imagine living in Paris to begin with. Now that most of the crowds had taken refuge the majority of the birds had taken to settling on every available surface, from the roofs to the streets. They sat there, following him with their beady black eyes, oddly passive and unnervingly silent except for the occasional sharp coo if he happened to step to close to one.

His staff beeped and he pulled it out and switched it to communicator mode. A message from Starfire rolled across the screen, it consisted of only a single location and the word ‘hurry’, presumably she had found the akuma. “ _Galeries Lafayette_ , huh?” He muttered and changed course slightly. “I’m not that far away.” He picked up the pace regardless, dropping the artistic flair of acrobatics in favor of speed.

When Nightwing finally arrived at the large department store he skidded to a halt on the roof, just before the great glass dome that was its trademark. He peered through it cautiously, crouching low as he did so to avoid being spotted himself. In the atrium below him a group of people were huddled within the confines of a large wrought iron bird cage. Many of the people had been present at the park and with a sinking feeling in his chest he picked out Victor, Karen and even the twins who were currently fighting back tears with choked sobs and sniffles as the clung to the legs of the teenagers. Pacing in front of the cage was the akuma.

The man was tall with a comically large chest and shoulders. His outfit consisted of a red cowl that came up over the top of his head to cover just under his cheek bones as well as tight black leggings and gloves that came up to his elbows. A small white division symbol rested on the middle of his chest, half over the red cowl and half over the gray shirt he wore beneath it. Around his neck hung an intricate bird whistle which he was currently using to direct flocks of the rats with wings. Since it was the only extraneous item on his costume it had to contain the akuma.

A soft tinkling alerted him to the arrival of Starfire. Apparently her kwami had taken him seriously about the bell because he’d added it to her costume by their first training session. It must have been as magic the rest as her transformation because it only rang when she didn’t need to be stealthy. It had saved him from jumping out of his skin more than once already. "Hello, my Star." He called up at her without looking from the glass. "Get a load of this bird brain." He turned to smile up at his partner only to stop and frown at the despairing look on her face as she peeked through the glass of the domed ceiling at the captured civilians. 

She looked close to tears and she hadn’t cried in front of him ever since the night her emotions had gotten the better of her and the thought of it happening again was almost petrifying. “What’s wrong?” He asked automatically, glancing over her to make sure she wasn’t hurt and noticed the pigeon she had clutched in her arms. “Nothing… I… I was just separated from a friend and I cannot locate him. I am not sure what happened to him for I did not see him when I flew back over the area that we had parted.”

His heart clenched at the thought that maybe she had been on a date, and that the friend might be more than just a friend, but he brushed the thought from his mind just as quickly. He wouldn’t be jealous of something that might not even be true. “Is he down there?" He asked and she shook her head solemnly. "I’m sure he's fine.” He reassured her before looking back down to the bird she carefully carried. “What’s with the pigeon?” Her mask covered most of the blush that crept across her cheeks but he caught the bit that peeked out from the bottom as she tugged at her cat ear in embarrassment. “When I first transformed I found the abundance of birds most…” She paused, “Distracting. I believe it to be my kwami’s influence, but I could not resist giving chase.” He knew better than to laugh at her over it when he’d found himself idly wondering what bugs tasted like not half a week ago. 

“When I caught it I discovered something I felt might be prudent to notify you of… Why are you all wet?” She asked suddenly, her fingers reaching out to touch his damp hair. “Just got out of the bird bath.” He replied easily, smiling his most charming smile. “What did you think I needed to know?” She clearly deigned not to respond to his dazzling wit and instead pulled the pigeon from the crook of her arm she had tucked it into. It began struggling immediately and she wrapped her hands carefully around its wings, cautious of her own strength and not wanting to hurt it.

“Touch the white feathers on its chest.” She instructed and he cautiously followed her instructions. The bird began to shiver violently the second he drew his fingers away and he watched as suddenly it split down the middle, the one shaking bird now resolved into two that were as docile as the ones coating the roof around them. “That’s how he got so many.” He breathed and she nodded.

“Alright, we need to do this carefully then so we’re not overwhelmed. We’re definitely outnumbered.” He mulled it over for a moment before grinning. “I think I have a plan and you’re going to be the star of the show.” She rolled her eyes but smiled back. “Must you always use the puns?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If it wasn't obvious, Matías and Mateo are Mas and Menos and have taken the place of Manon. 
> 
> I really wanted to used Koriand'r's modeling career from the comics cause I always loved that little snippet of her narrative as someone working hard to get by in a world that was not her own and that she didn't understand. But for my own reasons I don't really want her to become a world famous model right now either. 
> 
> Hint, it has to do with why she was reluctant to have her face photographed. 
> 
> If you want to see more of Kori modelling let me know and I might have her actually finish the shoot after things are wrapped up with this chapter's storyline.
> 
> Next chapter: Billy Pigeon (or maybe Mister Numerous.) Still haven't fully decided on that one. Also Nightwings plan starring Starfire


	6. Mister Numerous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeah... Not even able to begin to apologize about how late this is. I haven't given up on the story but I can't make promises that the hiatus will be short.

The double doors of the atrium slammed open with a bang that echoed throughout the quiet shopping center and Starfire sauntered through them as flocks of beady-eyed pigeons tilted their heads at her curiously. She whistled a jaunty tune, twirling her yo-yo casually as she passed between the birds. Both the akuma, who was in the middle of monologuing and the small crowd of people caught under the large bird cage stopped dead to watch her progress with disbelief and not a small amount of suspicion.

Karen let out a tiny squeal of equal parts excitement and disbelief as she automatically reached for her phone. The akuma, or rather Mister Numerous as he had claimed to be called, had used his pigeons to round her up with the other civilians who had been in the park at the time of his akumatization. There were a couple glaring exceptions, however, as her closest friend had been nowhere to be found after she took off, hand in hand, with Dick. She’d been trying to inconspicuously get a hold of her friend but each time she dialed it went straight to the chipper voicemail without even ringing. With any luck, though Kori’s was infamously bad, she was safe and holed up somewhere making bedroom eyes at her crush.

“Kori is never going to believe this.” She breathed, half to herself, as she began the live stream. “Hey all you Nightwatchers, this is the Bee who's got all the buzz about Paris’ famed hero.” She kept her voice just loud enough to be heard over the concerned murmurs of the crowd that surrounded her. “I am streaming to you live from the _Galeries Lafayette_ where the rumored ‘Girl in Purple’ has just made an appearance!” She turned the camera away from her to zoom in on Starfire who, having singled out her friend quickly and caught on to what was going on, gave a mischievous salute to the wannabe reporter. From what Kori could see, that wave was going to give her dearest friend fits.

It appeared that Mister Numerous had had just about enough of her as a wave of pigeons surged forward, halting her progress a few meters short of the cage. She glanced away from the crowd, raising a masked brow at her feathered foe archly. “ _Escusez-moi_.” She gestured at the pigeons blocking her path. “I am trying to get through here. I would very much appreciate it if you would move.”

Mister Numerous bristled at her cavalier tone, a ruffle going through his feathered suit as he puffed out his chest. “And who do you think you are?” He rasped at her in a voice that was more pigeon's coo than speech as she began to pick her way daintily through the mass of birds.

“ _Moi?_ ” She asked in disbelief. “Haven’t you heard the news? I’m here to help you!” She enthused earnestly. The watching crowd gasped and Starfire caught the sound of a distinctly Karen shout of, “Why you little-” before she was cut off Victor’s hand over her mouth. It was obvious that her friend was incensed about the perceived betrayal and Starfire had to fight down the urge to flinch at her rage.

Mister Numerous appeared thoughtful, his head tilted slightly as if he were listening to some unheard voice. “You aren’t an akuma, at least not one of my master’s…” He eyed her, his head turning sharply to the side in a distinctly birdlike motion as he followed her gradual movement towards the large cage between them.

“Maybe I’m not. Maybe I just like to play for the winning side.” She drawled coyly, trailing her fingers along the bars of the cage as she reached it. It tore at her heart to watch the citizens within cringe away from her as if expecting a blow. The tears in the eyes of the twins as they clung to the legs of her friends were particularly heart breaking. This would not be a pleasant ruse to maintain, but those pigeons had already proven to be vicious and they greatly outnumbered her and her partner. This was their best chance to get close enough to the whistle that had to be holding the akuma.

Mister Numerous appeared to consider her motivation for a moment. His beady eyes sized her up from head to toe with trailing glance that made her skin crawl and her hackles rise. “What do you want?” He asked slowly. “Why should we believe you?”

She glanced at her nails lazily, letting the suspense build as though she were thinking about her conditions. “I happen to believe that Deathstroke will win against Nightwing. If I am going to throw my lot in either way, I’d prefer not to be doing it with a lost cause. In return…” She paused again. “Give him to me when you’re done and let me keep my miraculous.” Her smile was predatory, “He’ll make an excellent toy.”

The sound of breaking glass turned everyone’s attention skyward. A dark shape had leapt through a panel of the famous stained glass dome that covered the very center of the indoor courtyard. Starfire barely resisted the urge to roll her eyes as Nightwing exited his freefall with a set of tightly controlled acrobatic flips and twists to land lightly in a crouch about twenty yards away. “The birdbrain is obviously one of Deathstroke’s akuma... But who the hell are you?” He growled in a voice so hostile that Starfire felt shivers of real fear crawl up her spine and she took half a step back.

She took a moment to remind herself that it was an act. It was all a show for the akuma and it wasn’t real. Not his anger and not her fear. “You may call me _Starfire_ .” She snarled when she was certain her voice wouldn’t betray her by shaking, either by alarm or excitement. She drew herself up and turned to Mister Numerous. “Tell your… _master_ that I’ll prove my loyalty by bringing him Nightwing’s miraculous!” She stumbled slightly on the hated word before launching herself at her partner without giving the akuma a chance to respond. They had agreed to keep the fight on the ground for as long as possible to try and drag it out as much as they needed to.

Once Starfire closed the distance between them it became very apparent that Nightwing was having a blast. His shoulders were shaking with restrained laughter and his lips twitched constantly. She’d known that he had a bit of a dramatic flair, but really, this was a serious matter. “Having fun?” She murmured as they danced around each other, pulling punches and kicks with the practiced ease of their nights spent sparring together.

“An absolute blast.” He confirmed, his lips grazing her cheek with his whisper as he pretended to take a brutal punch to his gut, before he doubled over, coughing dramatically. “You won’t get away with this.” He snarled, this time loud enough for their audience. “I’ll cleanse the akuma and reclaim your miraculous!” He hopped back and yelled “Lucky Charm!”

His hand glowed with a dazzling electric blue light as he reached into a pouch on his utility belt. The glow spread until Starfire had the distinct impression of feathers floating through the air around him before it faded away to reveal his hand now clutching a necklace made of colored beads, all in shades of blue and purple. He wrapped it quickly around his wrist before diving back into their mock fight. “Ready?” He mouthed at her before throwing another easily dodged punch. She nodded, almost imperceptibly, and ducked into the punch, wrapping one hand around his wrist and the other around his upper arm. Using her shoulder as leverage, to disguise her strength, she flung him through the air back towards the cage. “Over your dead body.”

Nightwing laughed boisterously as he soared, tucking his body in on itself so that he rolled smoothly midair to land against the cage feet first. He pushed off from it and flipped forward to land on the ground before it, feet together and arms outstretched, in a motion that was inhumanly seamless in its fluidity. He smirked at her as the crowd at his back cheered. They could no longer contain the smiles that tugged at their mouths, though the heaving of their chests turned the grins feral in a way that couldn’t have been faked. Sparring had become a favorite staple of training, second only to their rooftop races across Paris.

“You’ll have to try harder than that to kill me, _chaton_.” he spat at her. The signal word! She shivered in excitement and anticipation.

“With pleasure.” She threw her hand into the air, fingers clawing at some invisible enemy as she called out, “Supernova!” Brilliant green light filled her eyes and saturated her raised hand. The globe of light was somewhere between a dancing ball of fire and the sparking of electricity. It seemed to fill her body with an energy that was as powerful as it was ancient. She caught a glimpse of Nightwing take an involuntary half-step back.

With Mister Numerous at her back and her fire in hand, she couldn’t blame Nightwing for having a moment of doubt. They’d explored this ability pretty thoroughly and they’d agreed that she should never use it on a human. He lifted his hands with the beaded necklace stretched between them like a shield before he twitched two of his fingers in a classic ‘Bring it on’ gesture.

Starfire laughed wildly and dove through the air at him, glowing hand outstretched. Nightwing leapt forward to meet her with a guttural yell.

They passed each other with scant inches of space between them.

She smacked her hand against the cage instead, swiping it across the bars with a laugh. Green cracks spread through the metal from where her hand had touched and the cage began to disintegrate. Behind her Nightwing had leapt past her, crossing the shortened distance to Mister Numerous. His hands pulling apart to tear the cording of the necklace. A loud snap echoed through the atrium as the beads scattered across the floor at the feet of their foe. Immediately his pigeons swarmed him, pecking at his feet and body. He hollered and tried to shake them off as Nightwing dove into the fray and began dealing brutally precise blows with his staff, all the while trying to grab at the whistle that hung from the akuma’s neck.

Starfire looked at the corner of the cage that held her friends. The twins clung to Victor. His large arms were still wrapped firmly around the struggling Karen who still had her phone out and pointed towards the action. She winked at them and mouthed, “Psych!” They gaped at her as their prison disappeared around them and she whirled sharply about on her heel, a dramatic hand flung high against her forehead. “ _Zut!_ My dastardly plans have been foiled by this Hero of Paris.” She smiled. “I guess I’m just not cut out to be a villain. What do you think, Nightwing?”

He laughed as her Starbolt yo-yo entered the fray with him to wrap around Mister Numerous’s legs. She tugged at the same time that he pushed and together they brought him crashing down amidst a flurry of feathers. Nightwing snatched the whistle off his chest and dropped it to the ground to bring his boot down on it. The whistle broke with a crack and the butterfly that fluttered free of it was a poisonous orange.

Starfire could just make out the pattern of a black skull across its wings as Nightwing grabbed it with one gloved hand and shoved it into his utility belt. The pouch glowed and she averted her eyes, blinking stars from them when the light faded. The purified akuma fled from the scene and he turned to her after muttering “Bye bye, butterfly,” to himself in English.

“Well I don’t know about your future as a villain…” He glanced her over thoughtfully before smiling flirtatiously, “But have you thought about one as an actress? I believe our performances were César Award worthy and you’re certainly pretty enough.” He waggled his eyebrows at her and she placed a hand on her hip, rolling her own eyes back at him playfully.

“Wait! Wait, wait just a minute!” Karen pushed her way forward, the camera of her phone trailing them faithfully. “Do you mean to say that was all an act? Who is she, really?!” She directed the last bit at Nightwing, clearly still miffed about being played for a fool and not eager to trust Starfire. The sentiment hurt and Nightwing read it clearly on his partner’s face when he glanced at her.

He stepped before her, almost protectively, and answered, “Starfire is my partner and ally. We work together now and I’m happy to have someone as good as her watching my back.” He knelt down and scooped up a handful of the loose beads. “It was my idea to use the fact that nobody knew her as a way to get close enough to the akuma to engage it without the attack pigeons interfering. I apologize for deceiving you all, but don’t hold it against Starfire.”

Starfire placed her hand on his shoulder and stepped up. “No, the blame does not belong solely to Nightwing. I am sorry as well for our deception. We must go, but I ask that you all forgive me. I wish only to dedicate myself to the protection and well being of this city and its citizens.” She bowed her head solemnly. “You do not have to trust or forgive me immediately. I will prove to you all that I am worth it, first.”

She met Nightwing’s eyes and he nodded with a small half-smile before tossing the beads into the air with a shout, “Miraculous Cleansing Light.” This time she didn’t hold back the giggle as the feathers of light flooded the city and righted the wrongs that had been done by the akuma. They turned to leave as one, well aware that they had only a few minutes left before their timers ran out. Nightwing paused, then smirked. “Y’know… I was going to make a bird pun but I realized the irony would be fowl.”

Starfire rolled her eyes and began to jog away before tossing back a quick retort. “Don’t make this hawkward.” She stuck her tongue out at him and dashed out the doors onto the street before lifting off the ground and soaring away, a streak of green behind her. A gobsmacked Nightwing watched her go with stars in his eyes before following after her with a whoop of laughter. 

Starfire landed in an alleyway a couple of blocks from the park she had separated from her friends in with a couple moments to spare. “Stars off.” She murmured, brushing her hand over the jewel on her chest. Her costume disappeared and the jewel was hidden in it's silver locket. Kori once more found herself in the pajama shorts and boyfriend shirt from the photo shoot. “The photo shoot… Dick!” She exclaimed to Beast Boy as he dove tiredly into the purse to gobble up the square of tofu that she kept in a sandwich bag for him. In the commotion of the battle and its aftermath she’d forgotten about her friend.

She took off running down the street towards the park, her body feeling to awkward and slow compared to the strength and power of her miraculous form. Mentally she cursed herself for allowing herself to become so distracted. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted a flash of blue and black running against the rooftops of Paris. She whirled and waved at the figure, knowing it instantly to be her partner. “ _Monsieur_ Nightwing! A moment _s'il vous plaît_ ”

He skidded to a stop and turned to look at her while she waved. He must have released his transformation and recharged already, she thought to herself as he jumped down to land lightly before her. “ _Mademoiselle_.” He said, bending low with a flourishing bow. “You called?”

“Yes, I’m sorry to bother you but have you seen my friend? His name is Dick Grayson, he’s about this tall,” she gestured with her hand, “Black hair, blue eyes. We were running from the akuma together when we got separated and I can’t find him.” She fretted at him, missing the shock and surprise that flashed across his face with the beginnings of a blush only to be replaced by a deep fondness.

“Please calm down, Princess.” He soothed her. Her head shot up at the endearment and for a moment he saw genuine fear in her eyes. “Shhh, there’s nothing to worry about. I saw your friend a couple blocks back that way,” He pointed the way he had came from, “he was looking for you and your other friends as well. He was heading this way, something about a photoshoot to finish…?” He trailed off, “Anyway, he should be heading this way soon and you’ll undoubtedly run into him if you wait around at the park.”

She relaxed marginally, “Please, wait, why did you call me Princess?” She asked as he began to turn away. He paused thoughtfully before smiling charmingly, “Haven’t you ever had a nickname? It suits you… Princess.” He swept up her hand and kissed it lightly on her knuckles, “Let me be your knight in this matter. I’ll run back that way and let him know you’re looking for him.” He pulled away, admiring the pink that spread up her neck to her cheeks briefly before extending his staff and allowing it to carry him back up to the rooftops. He waved at her once more and took off in the direction he had pointed earlier, leaving a flustered but relieved Kori in his wake.

She waited at that spot until a winded Dick came jogging up to meet her. She threw her arms around him in a tight hug and he laughed.

“Ow geez, Kori, I think you just cracked my back. You are way stronger than you look, wow.” 


End file.
